Discipline Vs Devotion, Which do You Admire the Most?

“People think I’m disciplined. It is not discipline. It is devotion. There is a great difference. Luciano Pavarotti Opera singer 1935 – 2007

Another word for devotion could be passion. There is a lot written about the driving force that passion can bring to whatever we are doing. It helps us to stay in the zone when the will power has dried up long ago. Pavarotti is only one of many who have achieved greatness in their lives because they have the passion and also the belief in themselves. It is this devotion or passion that helps anyone overcome the challenges that they face on a daily basis. If we have this magic ingredient of the devotion, the discipline is not needed the same. When we first start something, we may need the discipline to keep us going, until we feel the thrill of having achieved a new skill, and can see how this new skill can create the dreams we may not have dared to dream when we were younger.

Perhaps you tried something when you were younger but didn’t feel you had the time to pursue it. It has lain dormant for all those years and you now have a hankering to pick it up again. It may take some discipline for the first 3 weeks or so . When the rusty skills develop quickly and we get that positive burst of energy through our body, we could get hooked into the feeling of the passion. However like everything in life according to the Chinese way of looking at health, there can always be extremes of anything. Be wary of allowing this new found ‘addiction/obsession,’ to tke over your life completely. As my father is always saying, “moderation in all things.”